Getting an Answer From City Government?

May 4, 2008 by Nick Ryder
Filed under: Question, Rant, Response

On Friday, April 18th, I was told by a Keene Police Officer that I was committing theft by plugging my computer into one of the outlets that stick out of the ground along Main Street. These outlets have places to be locked or turned off, but they were neither locked, turned off, or marked with something saying they weren’t for public use. The officer told me “You can ask the City if you can use their electricity, but for now you’re stealing it.” I obliged and moved on with my night.

Tuesday, April 22nd, I went into City Hall and asked the Clerk’s Office about these outlets. Were they outlawed to the public? If so, why isn’t it marked, since they look as public as the public trash cans? How do I get permission to use them? Some of the workers were unaware that such plugs even existed, but they promised to call Keene Park & Rec and give me a call when they got the answer for me.

Tuesday, April 29th, I still had not heard from them, so I followed up with a personal contact I have in the same building. Perhaps he, being an employee on the inside, could push someone to find an answer for me. Today, May 4th, I followed up with him, and they told him the same thing they told me: “We’ll get back to you.”‘

***Update: Tuesday, May 6th, I finally got a call from Ms. Little in the City Clerk’s office. She said that the outlets are not for public use, and are for event use only. The city manager told her that if someone wanted to make some of them public, I could submit a written request to the city council. Sounds like fun…
This still does not answer the question as to why they are not marked, or how any person should know that an outlet on public property is not for public use.

Comments

7 Comments on Getting an Answer From City Government?

u r a on Mon, 5th May 2008 4:12 pm

whiner

nick on Tue, 6th May 2008 11:24 am

Please see my update at the bottom of the post – May 6th

Andy on Tue, 6th May 2008 9:25 pm

It’s funny how they think you are stealing from them when in fact they have to steal from others to pay for those outlets.

Frederick B. Parsells on Wed, 7th May 2008 3:10 pm

The answer you seek as to how you or any other average citizen would have known that the electricity at Railroad Square was not for your use in the manner in which you were using it, is that neither you nor any other average citizen would have known. Clearly the electrical tower is not marked in such a way as to suggest its limited usage. The problem is that the electrical tower that you plugged into should have been locked. If it had been, you would not have been in that situation. I am led to believe that the city employee, whose responsibility it was to lock it, failed to do so after it was last used under the permitted basis. My guess is that was probably during the Earth Festival/Freedom Festival event a couple of Saturdays ago. Sorry for the inconvenience.

nick on Wed, 7th May 2008 4:55 pm

Mr. Parsells,

Thank you for your response. The incident took place the day before Freedom Fest. And I have been up and down Main Street several times since then, and have not seen one electrical box that WAS locked. I have attempted to open a few just to see if it was locked by some method I couldn’t see, and every one I tried opened without problem.

You are not alone in thinking they are supposed to be locked, as that’s what the City Clerk’s office told me as well, but if they are supposed to be locked on a regular basis, they are not.

frederick B. Parsells on Wed, 7th May 2008 7:17 pm

I will address that issue, the unlocked electrical towers, with public works. Thanks for making me aware of it.

Frederick B. Parsells on Wed, 14th May 2008 1:26 pm

Below is an official response that I received from the Director of Keene Public Works regarding the electrical tower issue in the downtown of Keene. I hope it clarifies the matter as to why several if not all of the towers are unlocked which led you to believe it was okay to use the electricity.

Hi Fred,

There are quite a number of the pedestal boxes that have been damaged and can not be locked. Bill Brynes is having the boxes turned off at the main panel box.

Kürt

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